The Beast's Purr
by FaerieBride
Summary: When Roxana moves to another country she is treated coldly, until she meets someone who shows her how special she really is.
1. Strange New Town

Disclaimer: I own nothing of the original characters or specific lines from the movie. I however do own my own characters such as Roxana (duh).

**Strange new town**

Slipping into the simple white blouse and tucking it into her faded jeans, Roxana headed downstairs to help her father with his arrival of his new packages. Living on a farm in Romania wasn't her first choice on where to live after high school but her family could no longer afford to live on their other farm. Her father was the only family she had and said that business was failing out there, but he heard the market for fresh produce was prospering in Romania. Unfortunately, because there was no money to support themselves, that also meant there was no money for Roxana to attend college.

Stepping on the ground level, Roxana made her way out of the quaint cottage to find a rusted old pick-up truck filled with boxes.

"Come on over here Roxana and help your old man with these boxes". Her father said.

As she looked at him she couldn't help but notice the deeply worn lines that were etched into his tan rough skin. Those lines were from years of hard work and worry for his daughter's well being. He was the type of man who never worried for the future and had no care in the world except when it came down to his daughter. She was his sole reason for even staying one place to provide. On occasion, she was lucky enough to hear him regale his tales of how he used to travel the world and all of the exciting places and people he had met. Roxana would sit there and imagine herself meeting the duke and duchess of a country or even traveling through thick dense jungles with only a knife to survive as her father had told her. The one story her father refused to tell was that of what happened to her mother. All Roxana had to remember her mother by was a picture and a necklace that was presented to Roxana on her 18th birthday. She never pushed the issue much as she grew older because she never wanted to see the pain on her father's face and was content believing that there would have to be a really good reason on why a mother would leave a family with a one year old child behind.

As Roxana neared the truck, she noticed the man who delivered the supplies. As Roxana had learned, many of the people in the small town she moved to had decided to wear strange clothes that one might have seen 150 years ago and they also kept very much to themselves. This man was no different and gave her a polite nod before returning to busy himself with the packages.

"Here honey", her father said as her turned to give her a package, "go put this in the barn next to old Bessie."

Roxana picked up the box containing Corn seeds and headed to the shed to place it next to their oldest cow. As she was about to head out she noticed a tiny grey kitten perched on one of the railings.

"Hello little one". Roxana smiled as she cautiously made her way to the kitten. "How did you get in here and where is your mommy?"

Roxana scratched the kitten behind its ears while it purred. She gingerly picked it up and headed out the door to her father.

"Papa," she called, "Papa"

"Yes honey?" Her father called as he stepped behind the truck with the last box in hand.

"You know you're my favorite papa in the whole world right?"

The old man chuckled. "What is it that you want Roxana?"

Roxana held up the kitten. "It was in the shed and I was wondering if we could keep it? I would take care of it and everything."

Her father sighed while the townsman stared at the kitten and then at Roxana. "I guess, but you are going to need to buy it food and a collar."

Roxana ran up to her father and gave him a peck on the cheek. She ran into the house and placed the kitten on the bed while grabbing her wallet.

/~~~~/

The town was a small one that was filled with little shops along the main road. Nestled in the valley of a mountain range, the small town would seem to be inviting to foreigners but the people were not. The few times Roxana had ventured into the square to try and meet others, she had been shut out with a cold shoulder. She knew she dressed differently from them but there was nothing that she could think of that would make them treat her in such a way.

As Roxana neared the main square, she found a window with pictures of bunnies and puppies on the window. She decided that this must be the appropriate store to buy pet supplies and walked in. A bell chimed somewhere in the back and a squat little old man walked to the front.

"How can I help you?"

Roxana walked up to the counter while taking out her wallet. "I would like to purchase cat food and a collar please."

The little man squeaked and jumped up in surprise. "You're not allowed to have cats in this town! It is forbidden!"

Roxana looked down at him in confusion. "Why not?" She asked with a frown on her face

"They are spies! Now get out of my shop and never come back asking for that again!" The old man quickly shuffled to the back and slammed the door behind him. Roxana was left with a puzzled look on her face and left the shop stepping out into the unwelcoming town. _What in the world was wrong with that man?_ Roxana wondered. _He must have been delusional._ Looking around Roxana decided to go to the butcher and purchase some meat and decided to milk the cow when she got home for her new kitten.

As she walked through the town, she started to think of the name for her new pet. She was concentrating so hard that she accidently knocked into a man and stumbled to the ground landing on all fours. The man spun around and stared down at her. He was different from the other townspeople Roxana noticed. He had long black hair and with his tailored black pants and shirt, his skin appeared almost a translucent white. What really caught Roxana's attention were his eyes. They were blacker than she had ever seen and seemed to hold a depth to them that caught her breath. She started blushing and quickly rose to her feet while picking up her bags.

"I-Im sorry sir," she managed to stammer out while staring at the gorgeous contours of his face. Just as he was about to say something she hurried off into the street. She didn't know why she quickly walked away but something within her told her that he was dangerous even if he was beautiful.

/~~~~/

Sitting on her bed after having had dinner, she was staring at her new kitten. The grey tabby (after checking to see if it was male or female) was resting soundly on her lap after having a bowl of milk. She smiled as she drank her own glass of milk which she had every night before falling asleep.

"You know what kitty cat? I am going to name you Silvya. Your coat is so silky that it almost looks silver anyway."

The cat opened one eye and licked her face. She giggled and moved to the bags that held some of her other purchases. As soon as she opened the first one she saw a flyer laid on the top. _Odd_, she thought, _I don't remember anyone putting that into my bag._ The flyer was for a town dance that was to happen in a week. As Roxana looked over it she got excited.

"Maybe this is how I can meet more people Silvya! What do you think?" She smiled and looked over to the kitten who mewed in response, settling Roxana's fate.


	2. A Party Surprise

Disclaimer: I own nothing of the original characters or specific lines from the movie. I however do own my own characters such as Roxana and whoever was not in the movie.

**A Party Surprise**

Roxana looked in the mirror near her bedside and stared at the girl in the reflection. The girl had light brown hair that landed right above her perfectly formed breasts that were hidden away by the pale green blouse with sleeves slightly hanging off of her shoulders. Her athletic tan legs were hidden behind a pair of nice white pants that she wore whenever she dressed to go out. One for never showing too much skin, she was of average weight and height but had curves in all the right places. Roxana sighed as she peered into the mirror. There was something missing she thought.

_Meow_

Roxana looked down at Slyvia playing with something shiny at her feet. It was a simple green gem surrounded by a gold ring and attached to a thin gold chain. Roxana gasped and quickly pulled the necklace from her kitten. It was her mother's necklace that she kept tucked away safely in a pine box.

"How did you get this Slyvia?" Roxana murmured as she stroked the gray tabby swirling around her feet.

Roxana stared at the object in her hand. It was a long time since she had seen the necklace and had never worn it for fear of losing it. She placed the delicate chain around her neck and stared at her reflection once more. The color of the emerald was the same color as her eyes. There was even a golden rim at the edge of her eyes that matched the gold band around her necklace. She had her mother's eyes as her father always told her and every time she would imagine how much of herself reminded her father of her mother.

Noticing how simple the necklace was really did completely the simple outfit she had put together. She smiled at her reflection and headed downstairs with Slyvia following. She kissed her father goodbye and headed out into the celebration.

/~~~~/

The "party" turned out to be townspeople all chatting to one another while a band attempted to sing an upbeat song with words that were barely audible. Roxana made her way to a booth that was selling cakes and cookies and bought some goodies to munch on while watching the crowd around her.

The people were chatting away and few were even smiling. Most however looked very grave and Roxana had to wonder why. She knew the theme of the party had to deal with vampires and how they hadn't been seen for 150 years but she figured that was some sort of joke. People should be laughing and dancing to the horrible band that was playing for them, not having somber conversations. Roxana inched closer to a couple that were speaking a bit louder than the others, trying to listen in.

"…. I know they have been gone for a while but they are destined to come back."

"No he was killed, it is impossible."

"Nothing is impossible Marty, I just have this feeling."

"You're crazy Margret; Dracula was killed along with each one of his brides. My Great Grandfather survived and told me all about it before he passed."

Roxana almost choked on her piece of red velvet cupcake. Were these people seriously considering that there had been actual vampires? Roxana looked around and noticed how most of the older people were huddled together while it had been the younger generation smiling and laughing. _The elders must just be senile and out of their minds. Everyone else seems to be fine_ Roxana thought to herself.

She finished her cupcake and decided to pick a group to join in for a conversation. There was no way she was going to come all the way out here just to be ignored and given the cold shoulder again. She found a group of girls that appeared to be around her age and moved in their direction. One of the girls, who was obviously the leader of the group by the way the others acted towards her, was deeply involved in telling how a date went with a guy earlier that week.

"And he was just so sweet to me, I couldn't help but giving in." The obvious leader of the group flicked her newly dyed blonde hair to the side.

"Oh Clair! You didn't!" One of her drones squealed out in envious delight.

Clair, the girl who captivated her followers, smiled and drew out her response finally giving them what they wanted to hear, "Oh yes."

Roxana reached the girls and gave them her best smile. "Hi, I'm Roxana."

The girls all turned to look at her with confusion. Clair turned to her and looked her up and down before giving a smirk. The others clearly always waited for her to respond first.

"That's nice. Can I help you?"

Roxana had figured nothing nice would come out of the girl's mouth, but was still shocked at how she made it sound sincere.

Struggling to not waiver in her composure, Roxana answered, "Well I was wondering how you guys are enjoying the party. I'm new here and I was wondering if all of your parties were like this."

Clair looked at her as though she were trying not to laugh. "You came over here to ask how the party is? You are here are you not?" Finishing her retort, Clair turned back to her band of followers and they all started laughing.

Knowing she had been dismissed, Roxana felt a sudden bust of rage welling through her that she couldn't explain and started to hiss. Roxana couldn't understand why she had gotten so angry but she knew she had never felt this mad before. Not to mention her skin under her necklace had grown very hot. As soon as Clair turned around to give another dismissal that would have the girls around her laughing, screams erupted. People turned in earnest to see what was happening when one word was yelled loud and clear before a loud screech was heard.

"VAMPIRES!"

Pandemonium broke out and people started running around in every direction. Roxana was confused for a moment and then was pushed to the ground by Clair. The blonde attempted to hop over her but Roxana never made it fully to the ground as Clair toppled over her landing in a heap at her feet. Roxana felt her necklace burning hotter on her skin and looked down to see it slightly glimmering. Transfixed on the glimmering sensation, she didn't even notice when Clair yanked her arm down to the ground.

"What is wrong with you?" Clair hissed. "Play dead or they will make you that way."

Roxana looked down from her crouched position and was just about to ask who when she heard the screeching again and looked up. There were two hulking shadows hovering the sky, circling like birds of prey. Their wings had an odd jagged shape towards the bottom and something protruded from the edge of the wings as though they could be used to grasp their pretty that they hunted. _Those are way too big to be birds_ Roxana thought and as the beasts came closer Roxana gasped. They weren't birds, their faces had an odd human similarity and their mouths were smiling. Only one word seemed to fit: Vampire.

Roxana leaped to her feet the same time one of the flying monsters swooped down at an alarming rate. Her legs started pumping as fast as they could, gaining momentum as she ran along. Everything was a blur as she passed buildings and people scrambling to get out of her way. She had no clue where she was running to until she had to make a sudden stop. She had hit a dead end in an ally way. Heart beating fast and turning to run towards the exit, Roxana was suddenly stopped by a strong arm on her shoulder. Her necklace was now scorching her neck as she was turned toward what had her gripped so tightly.

She almost fainted with shock. One of the flying creatures had found her and was laughing with such a sinister laugh it hurt her ears just to hear it. It was obviously male with the lack of hair on its head but she couldn't keep her eyes of the teeth. Long sharp incisors reached down from the tops of his mouth. They were gleaming white but stained with something dark at the tips. Blood, she realized and she started to thrash about.

"Now calm down little one," the creature said laughing darkly, "this is only…."

The creature stopped suddenly and looked down at her chest. _How sick is this guy?_ _He is going to stare at my cleavage before he decides to eat me?_ With that Roxana started wiggling around her upper body as best as she could and he almost dropped her.

"Look at me", growled the creature.

Roxana slowly looked up into the monster that had his hold firm on her arms. He cocked his head to the side and then smiled showing her what was behind that smile of his once again.

"Well this is interesting indeed. Master will be very excited. Time to go to sleep now precious."

The creature slowly widened his smile and Roxana was faced with a darkness that she could not escape.

**A/N: **Please review! I would be extremely grateful!


	3. New Surroundings

Disclaimer: I own nothing of the original characters or specific lines from the movie. I however do own my own characters such as Roxana and whoever was not in the movie.

**New Surroundings**

Roxana groaned as she started to slip back into consciousness. An aching soreness radiated to her upper forearms as she slowly opened her eyes. Blinking awkwardly, Roxana stared at the darkness around her. Waiting for her eyes to adjust, she felt the ground beneath her, grasping her fingers onto the surface she was laying on and felt the coolness of silk slipping through her fingers. She looked to the side and realized she was on a mattress. Quickly sitting up she peered around the space she was in.

The bed she had been placed on was one of the largest beds she had ever seen with four long slender posts that reached into a delicate canopy over head. The room itself seemed like something a queen or king would reside in and she was sure if she made a sound it would echo. There was a long ornate full length mirror in the corner that was surrounded by gold vines with ruby diamonds that impersonated delectable grapes. On the opposite side of the bedroom there was a 10 foot tall wardrobe that likewise held delicate carvings of golden vines onto its pale wooden frame. On either side of the canopy bed were large windows that jutted out slightly with a little sitting pad, that during the daylight would be spectacular to sit upon and look out into what lay beyond. What caught Roxana's attention the most, however, was the door directly in front of her. There was a flickering light that told her what lay outside that door was lit up by candle light.

Roxana slowly slid out of the bed and breathed a sigh of relief that she was still dressed in her clothes from the party. Just the thought of that creature undressing her made her shiver. Pacing the room, she thought about whether she should try to make an escape. She had no clue where she was and utterly confused as to why she was where she was in the first place. Sitting down at the ledge at the window, she thought about the party.

_There had been people running and screaming…. There was the horrible girl that told me to act dead and instead I ran faster than I thought possible and got caught by the monster… Who apparently decided not to kill me. Which is odd because when I read stories on vampires they never let their pray go… And who is this master?_

Just then footsteps sounded down the hall. Roxana quickly ran back to the bed and decided that pretending to be sleeping would be the best bet at survival from whatever happened next.

_Please walk past the door, please walk past the door. _

The footsteps slowly made their way to the door directly in front of Roxana and paused. Roxana breathed in a little and waited. The knob slowly made its way around and a light was held into her room. Roxana tried to breathe evenly and stayed as still and relaxed as was possible. There was shuffling over to her right and the room grew brighter over her closed eyelids. The shuffling started to move to her left and she assumed a light was lit as she tried hard not to open her eyes.

"You awake?" A rough voice questioned from the side. "Hey, I need you to get up now."

Roxana tried not to respond and continued to lay still as whoever was talking moved closer.

"Hey you might want to wake up, Otherwise I will have to wake you up and I don't do it gently."

With that, the voice moved onto the bed and Roxana shot up and leaped to the opposite side in the blink of an eye. She swiveled her head so fast she heard her neck crack and looked at who had been speaking. The man, or if you could call it a man, was hunched over on his side and had a limp arm. His hair looked as though it did not know the meaning of shampoo or conditioner for that matter. He had wide eyes and crooked cracked teeth that were exposed at the shock of her reaction.

"W-Who are you?" Roxana asked.

The unfortunate looking man stood up and regarded her cautiously before speaking.

"I am Igor. You are to get dressed and go eat."

"What are you talking about?"

Igor rolled his eyes. "You get dressed and you eat." With that he started to shuffle to the door.

Roxana knew that she needed to know more about what was going on. In all of the television shows, the best way to escape was to know as much as possible about one's situation.

"Um Igor. What am I supposed to wear and where am I possibly supposed to go and um eat?"

Igor stopped to turn around and pointed to the closet. "That is where clothes are held and food is downstairs. Do not even think about running. My master will catch you before you even reach the door."

Just as Roxana was about to inquire as to who is master was, he was out the door and slammed it shut. Roxana looked around the room and sighed. She had no clue where she was, no clue why she was even where she was, and was just plain clueless. As she sat there, she wondered why she wasn't even on the verge of tears. This whole time she remained calm and sorted out the situation even though she knew she should be terrified and screaming.

_Okay_, she thought to herself, _ I am being completely rational and believe that the only way to find my way out of here is to remain calm. That is why I am not breaking down right now. I just need to get changed for some odd reason and go ask this "master" why he has kidnapped me… Right._

With that resolve, Roxana stepped up to the wardrobe and opened it. Inside there were many dresses in all styles and colors. With wide eyes, Roxana started to pick through them and the corners of her mouth turned down in a frown when she noticed one thing that was similar among most of them. They were something she would never be caught wearing because they either showed too much cleavage, too much stomach, or just plain too much. Even though they were floor length, they were hardly covering much. Roxana frowned even more when she noticed that they weren't even made with materials she was familiar with. Finally, she decided on a maroon colored dress that was corseted at the top and had a slit running up to her thigh. _If I don't move too much, the slit won't be much of a problem. And maybe corsets aren't all that bad_.

After several attempts at lacing up the bodice, Roxana was ready and quickly looked into the mirror before heading out. She was surprised how elegant she looked even with the not so elegant style. Her green pendent that was hanging around her neck had that odd sort of slight glimmer to it that matched the curiosity in her eyes. The dress hugged her curves that she had hidden for most of her life.

Making her way to the door, she released a calm breath and opened it. The hallway was made out of stone and illuminated by candle light along the walls. She quickly found the stairs that the man mentioned and made her way down them. As she stepped down on level ground again she noticed her necklace started to heat up again.

_Why is it burning my neck again? It has never done this before._

As Roxana brought her hand up to take the necklace off, she was stopped by the man who called himself Igor. Without hiding where his eyes were wandering, Igor gave a hideous grin.

"Come." He simply stated after he had a good look at the slit in her dress, and walked her down another hallway to a set of doors that seemed to reach two floors high.

As he started to open the doors, Roxana's heart started to beat faster and her necklace slowly started to brighten. The doors opened to reveal a wide hallway with breathtaking chandeliers and beautiful art that seemed to date back centuries. There were windows from the bottoms of the floor, all the way to the top that spanned the length of the great hall.

"I brought her master." The poor wretch next to her stated eagerly.

Roxana moved her eyes to the long table that lied in front of her. At the end of the table there was a man who had his back facing towards her. _This must be the "master"._ Every instinct in Roxana's body was urging her to run but she couldn't. She was captivated by whoever stood at the end of the table but was quickly yanked out of that state when the gem was burning hot against her skin. As Roxana went to pull the necklace off of her skin she gasped when the man turned around.

He had dark black hair that was pulled back into a golden clip and was wearing all black that made his skin look almost translucent white. It was the man in the market she had accidently ran into. He smiled an almost unbelievable smile and spoke with an accent that could make any girls heart melt.

"Welcome to my home Roxana. I have been searching for someone like you for quite some time."

Roxana's jaw was slack. She struggled for words. "W-Who are you?"

The handsome man disappeared suddenly and Roxana jumped when she heard his voice from behind her. As she wheeled around she almost ran into him again.

"I am Vladislaus Dragulia, or as your annoying faerie books like to call me… Dracula."

**A/N: I was going to wait to add Dracula in this but I got really excited and really wanted to get into my story. Thank you for everyone who reviewed. It actually made me excited and made me write my next chapter earlier than I expected to. **


	4. Lost

Disclaimer: I own nothing of the original characters or specific lines from the movie. I however do own my own characters such as Roxana and whoever was not in the movie.

**Lost**

Everything was quiet as Roxana tried to comprehend what the man in front of her just said. _It's impossible. They are just faerie tale stories. _No matter how hard Roxana tried to convince herself otherwise, she realized everything made sense. She knew that the creature that captured her was not human, everything in the castle seemed too lavish and outdated from the modern era, and her brain was screaming unreasonably to run away from the man in front of her as her pendent grew brighter the closer he stepped.

Dracula stared at her for a moment. "Come now my pet, you must be hungry."

In response, Roxana's stomach started to growl and she silently cursed it. Dracula slowly made his way back to the table and pulled out a chair. Moving hesitantly, Roxana made her way over, unsure of whether she should accept the offer or make her way for the nearest exit. He smiled as she chose to sit down but not before staring at her neck. His gaze made her shiver, and it took restraint not to casually brush up against him as she took a seat. Roxana gently rubbed her neck and had almost forgotten about the burning sensation.

"You might want to place a cloth under that exquisite piece of jewelry."

Roxana looked shocked as Dracula sat at the other end of the table.

"And why is that sir?"

Dracula smiled lightly while sipping from a glass with amber liquid inside. "Unless you wish to constantly burn when you are around me, then that is your decision. Otherwise, it would be wise of you to place something underneath it."

Roxana almost dropped her jaw but regained composure. "I am not sure what you are talking about Count, if that really is who you are, but it does not burn. Also, I will not be staying long."

The Count put down his glass and stared straight at her making her heart skip and her skin tingle. "You will find that leaving is not an option my pet."

"And you will find that I cannot stay here. I have a father to look after as well as a new kitten. I am leaving. Thank you for dinner but I really must be going."

Roxana quickly stood up and made her way to the door. She never made it very far when Igor stood in her way.

"I would sit down if I were you", he said in his gravelly voice.

"No." She pushed the deformed man to the side and strode to the door. As she was about to reach the handle, a mewing noise stopped her in her tracks. She peered over her shoulder and watched a gray tabby make its way over to the handsome man still seated at the table.

"How did you get…?"

Dracula smiled up at her. ".. Your kitten? There is much you do not know and you are now boring me with these questions. You will not leave but please, by all means, go ahead and try to leave. It will give me something to look forward to. I would delight in a little chase. Igor, step aside."

Roxana looked to see if the man was playing some sort of trick, but he was not. Igor stepped to open the doors and moved out of the way. She gave one last look at her kitten that she had fallen in love with in such a short time but her own life was at risk. She had a father to warn and something inside of her was screaming to run. _I'll come back for you Sylvia._

Roxana started off down the hallway that she had followed only a minute before. As she ran she was grateful for the unusually high slit in the dress she had chosen to wear because it opened enough for her stride to reach the maximum potential.

Even though the castle was sparsely lit, Roxana noticed she had no problems seeing the way in front of her and quickly reached the area where she had come down the stairs. Choosing to go further down, she followed another set of staircases which led her to an area branching off into all directions. Without hesitating, she chose the one that veered slightly off to the left. Running with such a speed that surprised her, she passed many doors and made random turns down hallways she believed would show her the way out. Roxana stopped short when she reached a door all the way at the end of the long tunnel. Hoping it would lead her outside; she yanked it open and stepped in.

Even though there were no lights on in the room, Roxana could see almost everything. There was a large dark bed draped in black and red silk that hung on posts that reached all the way towards the ceiling. The bed, she noticed, was even larger than the one she had been placed in. On the wall to the right of it, there lay a large mirror. In fact, Roxana would have guessed the wall was made out of the mirror itself if not for the slight bit of gray slab that showed at the edges. Looking over to the left, Roxana's face went paler than was imaginable. A solid granite coffin was set up. She was in the room of the man she was trying to escape.

Trying to turn back, the door quickly slammed in her face and her necklace lit up brightly.

"Mmmm, interesting. You chose my quarters instead of the door to your possible escape."

Roxana wheeled around and lowered herself into a stance prepared to fight. The count laughed as though it were amusing for her to be trying.

"You disappoint me. I expected you to at least find the door with your senses. No matter, I much prefer you in my room willingly than for me to have to drag you. Listen to your heartbeat. Do you hear it?"

Roxana realized that she was nervous and her heart was beating fast. Being in a room with a complete stranger, even a handsome one, was no where she wanted to be. She was innocent and the thought of being alone with a man in his room made her nervous. Let alone, a vampire that could kill her in a second. Trying to maintain her heart rate, she began to breathe slowly. There was no need to let him think he could affect her this way, scaring her yet arousing her at the same time.

"I would rather be dead than be here in this room alone with you."

Dracula suddenly appeared right in front of her causing her to jump. He gripped the sides of her arms tightly but firmly and her necklace really started to burn into her skin. She wriggled around in attempts to break loose but she realized that struggling did nothing but make him grab tighter so she stopped. Once he was sure she would stop fighting, Dracula released his grip but slowly moved his hands up her arms and down to the stone that glowed brightly. Roxana tried desperately not to move but her heart beat faster in nervous anticipation.

He never fully touched the gem and spoke almost in a whisper. "It seems your heart speaks a different story. You belong to me and you will not leave here until I allow you to. You need to understand your purpose before you are free. If you give me any trouble, I will see to it that your father will experience your punishment."

His fingers lingered a bit lower, dancing along her cleavage. As Roxana's breath caught, Dracula smiled and leaned into her ear.

"You are such a lovely creature. It would be a shame to see someone like yourself lay to waste."

Dracula stepped back, but only enough so Roxana could breathe. She didn't even know that she had been holding her breath until that moment.

"What do you want with me?"

"You will know within time, but you must get comfortable first. No need in having you if you cannot cooperate because you are… uncomfortable."

Roxana was scared and confused as to what he meant. He was threatening to hurt her father and she should be furious and ready to fight, but something about him made her weak. Roxana heard the door open behind her and took a tentative step backwards, looking to see if Dracula would stop her.

"You may go, but you are not free to leave. Oh, and you might want to use your… senses to find your way back", He said with a slight glint of humor in his dark eyes.

Roxana looked confused and slowly made her way out of the room. _Use my senses? How does that even make sense?_

Roxana walked down the long hallway and past another hallway… and another and another. Just as she thought she was going to be lost, she thought for a second and heard a slight sound coming from the hallway she had just past. Turning around to travel down that dark hall she could hear the noise louder. Following the sounds, she realized it was the sounds of plates being clattered together. Feeling hopeful, she started to walk faster. Soon enough she made it to the opening that the staircase had led her to. Roxana smiled at her triumph and took the stairs to the floor with the dining hall. Deciding she did not want to face whoever was in the dining hall, she moved up the stairs to the candle lit hallway where she first found herself in that bedroom. There were so many doors however, and she did not know which one she had come from.

_Meow_

Roxana looked down at her feet and saw Sylvia sitting calmly grooming herself. Roxana sat down and started to burst into tears. All of her emotions poured out at once. _How did I get into this mess?_ She thought to herself. _I just want to go home and pretend none of this happened._ Sylvia walked up to her and licked her face. Her tongue was slightly rough and tickled Roxana's cheek. Roxana sucked in a big gulp of air and stopped crying.

"Sylvia, I have no clue on where I am supposed to go or what I am supposed to do."

As though the cat had heard her, it stood up and slowly made its way to the door on Roxana's left and hit it with her paw. Curiously, Roxana stood up and went to the door turning the knob. Peering in cautiously, Roxana noticed it was the same room she had woken up in. Placed in front of the bed was a tray with her untouched food and a glass of milk. Roxana's stomach growled and she realized she had not eaten when she sat down earlier. Letting Sylvia step in before her, Roxana made her way to the large bed and sat down in front of her food.

Finishing her meal with the last gulp of milk, Roxana laid down on the bed. Sylvia leaped up gracefully and curled herself right against Roxana's side, purring in contentment.

Right before Roxana gave into the tiredness that was building inside, she had only one thought.

_I will get out of this mess. If it is the last thing I do._

**A/N: I love the speculation of what everything means pokemon. All I can say is that there are little hints that I have placed. Also, thank you for everyone following this and reviewing. It really keeps me going. **


	5. Observant

Disclaimer: I own nothing of the original characters or specific lines from the movie. I however do own my own characters such as Roxana and whoever was not in the movie.

**Observant**

As Roxana woke up the next day she let out a slow lazy stretch that reached all the way from her head to her toes. Just as she was about to sit up she stopped. She wasn't in her home back on the farm. No, she was in a huge room that seemed too richly furnished to be a hotel. Roxana then groaned as she remembered last night. _How is this even be real, _seemed to travel to her mind. Here she was, a little farm girl, stuck in a faerie tale. _Nightmare is more like it._ Slowly she sat up on her hands and looked around her. The room still had the ornate furniture from the night before but it was a little lighter in the gloom. Roxana slowly turned to the edge of the bed and lightly tapped her toe to the floor. The stone was surprisingly warm as she slid both legs out from under the thick material of the bed and placed them on the floor. She stood up and padded to the window and slid the thick drapes to the side.

Roxana gasped as she took in the view before her. She was far from the thick green forest below her. The dark green trees spread out as far as she could see until they touched the mountains in the background. There was a winding blue river that seemed to cut through the lush growth in perfect harmony. _Beautiful_ was the single thought that went through Roxana's head as she stared out over the scenery. Then slowly, realization hit her as she stared over the vast amount of trees. _Where is civilization? _Panic slowly started in her heart and her chest tightened. She was set on finding an escape out of the castle but where to go from there? She slowly made her way to the bed and sat back down. A mewing came from the corner of the room and Roxana looked over.

"Come here little Slyvia"

The grey tabby made its way over to the bed and gracefully leapt up and sat right next to Roxana's arm. Roxana stared at the cat and started to cry. It was all too much for her. She was in a foreign country where nobody would even speak to her. Now she was kidnapped by creatures she didn't even know existed. She had no idea what they wanted or how to even escape from them. Roxana lay on her pillow and let the tears fall not caring where they landed.

Slyvia started to wet Ronxana's face with warm kisses until she calmed down. She scooped the grey tabby into her arms and slowly started to stroke her silver fur until the purring resonated throughout her entire body. Roxana took a huge sigh and stood up. _I can do this. I just need to start exploring and find a way out of here._

With that thought in mind Roxana stepped to the door and stopped. She looked down and realized she was still wearing the reveling dress from the night before. _I really need to find something more appropriate. No need to give that "Count" a reason to keep me here. _

Walking towards the wardrobe, she flung the doors open and peered once again at the reveling dresses before her. After spending what seemed like a life time going through the dresses, she decided on a floor length dress made from a light blue material. It had a sweetheart neckline with a slit on the left side of the dress. The bodice clung tightly to her body while the skirt gave enough leg room just in case she had the chance to run once again. After giving one final look in the mirror, Roxana strode to the door and pulled it open.

/~~~~/

Roxana spent most of the day exploring the castle and trying to achieve a general layout of the area. She first started off with exploring the floor she herself was placed on. It was a long hallway filled with doors each one opening to a bedroom. It reminded herself of a grand hotel but with a gothic twist. With stone walls and floors, Roxana definitely felt like she was in a castle from the medieval times and the lit torches on the wall helped add to that effect.

The rest of the castle seemed to follow this general effect and there seemed to be more rooms than Roxana could imagine. She followed the stairs to the tallest tower and to the lowest dungeon and counted a total of ten floors. By late afternoon she was exhausted and starving.

"Wow Sylvia, we have not had anything to eat. Let's see if we can find something in this gloomy place".

Making her way to what she believed to be the main floor, she heard a slight commotion. It sounded like banging pots to her and she moved at a faster pace. As she started to head down the main floor, a slight blur of light caught her attention. Roxana turned to the door that was slightly ajar and stepped inside and starred at the sight before her. She was in a large ballroom with balconies high in the stone walls that were across from five story windows overlooking an impossible garden. The flash of light Roxana had seen was the sunset hitting the many different colors of the exotic looking flowers.

There were orchids, tulips, and many other flowers she didn't recognize all growing wildly in between bushes. Large oak trees stood on either sides of the windows with thick green vines connecting them. As she looked out she saw that the greenery had created a path that went further into the garden but a large hedge stood in the way of going straight. A person would either have to go left or right but Roxana could not tell which way would be best since the rest of the garden seemed to be fenced off with an 8 foot wall of bushes.

_This is surreal_. Roxana moved forward and found a door off to the right. She ran to it as fast as she could but was immediately dismayed to find it locked. Hearing a mewing coming down by her feet she found her kitten pawing at the door.

"Its okay Slyvia, we can figure out a way to get through this. I know you want to get into that garden as much as I do."

Food forgotten for the moment, Roxana stared out and watched the sun slowly fall behind the mountains.

"Hey You! Get away from that door!"

Roxana spun around to see the man Igor come limping over to her as fast as he could.

"Why? It is locked anyways."

"Master says you are to not be in this room and so you are leaving now". Igor grabbed hold of Roxana's arm and started to pull her towards the hallway. She yanked her arm out of his grasp and stood in a stance she hopped seemed unwavering.

"Listen, I have not had anything to eat in a long time and I was trying to find food. I can walk myself out but I am hungry."

Igor looked at her for a moment and then started to head to the door. "Fine but you make it yourself. Come, I show you where food is."

Roxana's stomach let out a growl of agreement as she followed Igor to the door right across from the room she had originally entered. She moved into a large kitchen and stared around at the food that seemed to come from everywhere. _This will fill me up no problem_.

/~~~~/

As she finished off the glass of milk and placed it in a sink, Roxana sighed with content. She hadn't realized how hungry she was and the meal was delicious. Stepping out into the hallway her necklace started to glow in the darkness. Night had fallen and Roxana could guess why her necklace started to glow brighter and hotter as she ran towards the stairs.

"Good Evening my pet."

Roxana blinked twice as she realized that a man was standing directly in front of the stairs. _He was not there a moment ago…_

"You were not there a moment ago".

The count laughed a deep laugh that made Roxana shiver in delight and fear, her body warming in response to the sound as well as the heat radiating from the stone around her neck.

"Well aren't you just observant. Did you have a nice walk around my wonderful home?"

"Yes, but you will not hold me prisoner here sir."

Dracula slowly smiled and flashed the whites of his elongated teeth. "I'm sorry, you will find that you cannot leave Roxana. You will serve my purpose like you were born to do and that does not involve you scurrying off to your world."

"Purpose? And what is that? Be your slave?"

"Oh don't be so boring. I have a much more creative use for you. I'm not even sure you realize your full potential yet. This should be very interesting. Now if you will please step aside, I need to have my first meal."

Roxana stood there confused as she watched the man walk past her and into the room overlooking the garden. He stopped at the entrance and turned. "You might want to start to prepare to use your senses. It will make it easier on the both of us, or should I say you". With that, the count closed the door shut and Roxana heard the distinct click of a lock.

_Use my senses? He keeps saying that and it makes no sense! What am I supposed to use my nose or something?..._

Roxana slowly sniffed the air. _This is crazy_, she thought. All of a sudden, she smelled it. What it was, she was not sure but she started to follow the smell. It was musky and seemed to have layers. Walking around the staircase she found a hidden door that was slightly ajar. Making sure that her precious little kitten was still with her, she opened it and found a hallway leading into the ground. Taking a deep breath she stepped inside.

She continued to follow her nose through the passage way until she found a door where the smell seemed to intensify. Not wanting to make too much noise for fear of what was behind the door she slowly put her hand on the handle and pushed.

Darkness. That is what Roxana first saw. She slowly let her eyes adjust as the strong musty order surrounded her. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness she concentrated on focusing them. She realized she was staring at a tunnel. The strong musky smell was the water slightly running down the walls which she realized was made of dirt from the ground she was in. She sniffed the air once more but could smell nothing different. _Maybe this will be a way out?_

She looked down to see her gray tabby take a couple steps away from the door and towards the castle she just came from. Roxana looked at Slyvia curiously. In the short time she had her little kitten she had known it to be ad venturous and always running into things. Now, however, it was stepping away from a possible escape. _Maybe Slyvia is a little stressed from everything. _Roxana stared one last time at the tunnel and sighed. _Well It would not be very smart of me to escape when it is dark outside. I wouldn't be able to see my way home very well. _

Closing the door, she stepped back and made her way back to the hidden opening behind the stairwell.

**A/N: I firstly want to apologize for not writing in a really long time. I was away at college and realized my major was a little difficult. I am now writing for the summer and hope to finish it by the end. Secondly, I know this is not a very long chapter and that is because I wanted to get all of the basics out of the way so that many won't be confused when I talk about the castle. The next chapters will be much more interesting and will have a lot more interaction that I personally look forward to. If anyone is still reading this I want to say thank you so much.**


End file.
